Retail Shopping
by Lust.Is.Evanescent
Summary: Booth teaches Bones a little about retail shopping


**A/N: **Total angst but comfort at the end.

**Disclaimer:** I DO NOT OWN BONES

The time was 11:49 p.m and she was feeling very antsy, her apartment A.C hadn't broken down but she was breaking out in cold sweats and having slight difficulty breathing, so she took off her knee length night gown and put on a big grey Lakers hoodie sweat shirt Booth had given her and light fitting burgundy yoga pants then grabbed her keys and purse she had to get out of her apartment, the silence which she was previously used to was now stifling and choking her which didn't make any sense since she wasn't claustrophobic and even if she was her apartment rooms were big enough for two medium sized beds and an extra wardrobe.

This feeling had started 2 weeks ago when she had found out that her mothers' remains had been at her place of work all this time, she had been hoping against all hopes that her mom wasn't dead even though a part of her had accepted the probable death of her mother but still she wasn't prepared for the shock of finding her at the Jeffersonian in LIMBO, and truth be told years of compartmentalizing didn't help her either, it was like all the feelings she had refused herself to feel just came slamming into her and she didn't know how to process them.

Every time she remembered the first time she found her, the first time she allowed her hands really touch her remains, a shiver coursed through her body and she felt a cold hand slide down her spine it made her feel all cold and hollow inside, she wasn't in the mood to be confined to an elevator so she took the staircase down all the way to the parking lot of her building, she got in her car and drove off into the night.

She drove through the familiar streets of D.C not knowing exactly where she was headed but still the whole driving experience made her feel better, she'd been driving around for 30 minutes when she found herself in front of a comforting and familiar apartment building, Booths' apartment building, she came out of her car and looked up and noticed she could see through a slit in his thick, dark curtains it was 12:19 a.m but his lights were still on...huh! And he called her a workaholic , he was probably up there right now with papers strewn about him while he hunched over his coffee table with probably black coffee to keep him awake and a pensive expression on his face as he mulled over case files and evidence inventory well he'd have to put all that work on hold, Seeley Booth was her partner in the FBI, theirs was an usual partnership because usually FBI agents were paired up with fellow FBI agents and not forensic anthropologists who worked in what was generally known as a museum, but still they made it work. If anybody had asked her 11 months ago, i.e. a month before she met him , what she thought of Special Agent Seeley Booth, she would have catalogued him as she generally would any law enforcement agent with the license to carry a firearm, obnoxious, purposefully intimidating, proud and the increasing tendency to be stupid, but after only a few months of getting to know him and work with him she could edit his characters to brave and selfless but still very obnoxious and intimidating but in a good way.

She wasn't feeling so antsy or stifled anymore so she didn't see the need to run up the stairs, instead she slowly walked up the stairs, when she got to his door she wondered for a moment why she had come to his place without bothering to call, what if he had company? and what the hell was she expecting from him? the only answer that fleeted through her mind was images of him comforting her on many occasions with his words or minute actions, she remembered how she felt in those moments so she made her decision and knocked 3 times on his door and waited, she didn't have to wait for long in less than 10 seconds she heard him ask who it was

"Booth it's me"

She heard his keychain slide and then his door opened, he looked so different from SA Seeley Booth, he wore a plain black loose fitting T-shirt and black sweatpants, he was barefoot and his usually perfectly combed hair looked like he had run his hand through it one time too many, he had a shadow of stubble which was such an odd sight because when she usually saw him he was clean shaven, here in the safety of the four walls of his home he was just Seeley Booth

"Bones?..." he paused while he took in her appearance

"Can I come in?"

"Sure...sure come in" he shifted a little from the entry way making room for her to enter, when she entered he locked his door

"What's up?"

"Nothing"

"Bones it's..." he paused as he looked at his wall clock "...12:21 in the morning and you look like that so what's wrong and don't tell me nothing when it's obviously something" by now they had walked over to his couch and on his table just as she had imagined were files and a half full mug of black coffee, they both sat down on the ends of the couch, he turned and hazarded a look at her, she looked so sad, her usually fiery *cerulean* eyes looked dull and unhappy so he moved a little closer

"Temperance what's wrong?"

"It's just..." she didn't want to cry but she couldn't keep it all in damn it, all the feelings of dashed hopes, abandonment, loneliness and unresolved issues came pouring out of her in form of tears and she let it, she felt him move closer and wrap his arms around her quaking shoulders, it only made her cry harder "...I don't know what to feel anymore, all this time I thought ...I thought she might still be alive, even though I willed myself to believe she was dead but still a part of me a tiny part of me hoped that she was alright not...not...murdered" she sobbed her heart out on his shoulder and he just soothed her by rubbing slow circles on her back and smoothening her hair with his other hand she cried for another 10 minutes and when she was done, she just stayed there, it had been a long time since she had anyone to lay her burdens on and it felt good

"Bones..." her head was still on his shoulder so her answer was muffled

"...how do you feel now?"

"A little better"

"Yeah?" she raised her head and then looked into his eyes, she saw understanding and comfort there, how the hell did he do that?

"Yeah..." she looked at his shirt and noticed the damp spot on his shoulder where she had cried "...oh...sorry about your shirt" he just gave a half smile

"Don't worry, there's plenty more where this came from" they both laughed a little before he continued

"Bones…"

"Hmm"

"...there's something I wanna show you..."

"What?"

"...just a little something I do when I'm depressed or sad or angry"

"You...actually get sad...wow"

"Ha ha very funny, I do get sad too you know"

"I highly doubt that"

"So do you want to see it or you wanna keep making fun of me..." he didn't wait for her answer "...you know what don't answer that come on"

"Booth where are we going?"

"It's a surprise of sorts just enough with the questions and c'mon" her curiosity was piqued now and she followed him out of his apartment and waited for him to lock his door, then they made their way downstairs and to his SUV and drove out, after 15 minutes of constant questions from her and constant declination from him, they pulled into the parking lot of a 24/7 all you can get store

"Tommy's, you couldn't just tell me we were coming to Tommy's?"

"Yeah it would have ruined the surprise"

"Whatever what are we doing here?"

"Always with the questions aren't you?...come on let's go you'll see" they got out of the car and he slung his arm around her shoulder, they walked into the store and it was surprisingly mildly filled with people, the security guard at the front door waved at Booth and he waved back

"They seem to know you pretty well here"

"Yeah I come here...a lot..." he looked around "...and now Temperance Brennan let me introduce to the wonders of retail shopping" she was shocked but only for a second

"Retail shopping, you Seeley Booth retail shop?"

"Yeah what's so wrong with that?"

"Nothing, it's just so ...odd"

"Yeah well odd or not I hope you brought your credit card coz we are going on a shopping spree"

"For what?"

"I don't know, anything that catches your fancy"

"Huh?"

"I meant anything you see that you like"

"This feels odd Booth I've never done this before but ok" they walked around the store picking out stuff and tossing them into their shopping carts, Brennan was the depressed one but with the way Booth was picking out stuff you'd think the store was closing in the next 10 minutes, Brennan had her hood up and Booth was besides her and they were both pushing their carts forward, to an outsider they looked married an old lady actually walked up to them and advised Brennan to buy a lot of yoghurt, she thought she was pregnant because her sweatshirt was kind of protruding when they both corrected her she apologized and walked away not believing them.

An hour and 30 minutes later and a shopping load of $949.52 later, they had piled everything both useless and useful they had bought into Booth's car and were on their way back when Brennan had finally said what had been on her mind the entire shopping time

"So this is why you have so much crap?"

"Yep and it's not all crap, you never know when you'll need a clay cutter"

"Booth you don't do clay work"

"Whatever"

"You know something..." they were about 10 minutes from his apartment

"What?"

"...I actually do feel better" he turned and regarded her for some seconds before finally allowing himself a victorious smile

"Yeah?..."

"Yeah"

"...see I told you you'd feel better"

"Thanks Booth"

"Anytime Bones"

They drove in silence enjoying the silence and the early morning sights of D.C, it was 2:18 a.m and they both had to be up at 5 a.m so Booth suggested she sleep over at his place

"Are you sure Booth, I don't wanna inconvenience you"

"It's no problem, you could stay in the guest room and try to get some sleep, driving while you're this tired would be dangerous"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah totally"

"I know I said this before but thanks"

"You're welcome"

They both knew they wouldn't get much sleep but somehow they didn't mind.

A/N: Waddya think, review


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